Comparing Decorative And Fine Art

There is sometimes a difference made between "fine art" and "decorative art." While fine art, which includes paintings, sculptures, drawings, watercolors, graphics, and architecture, is thought to have been produced for aesthetic reasons and is evaluated for its beauty and meaningfulness, decorative art, such as ceramics, furniture, jewelry, and textiles, is intended to be both beautiful and useful.

I believe that great art is subjective, no matter where you place it on the definitional spectrum. My beautiful art is created to entertain a "emotional contact point," to "speak to me," and to engage and thrill the audience. Everyone has a right to their own viewpoint.

I also think that the creative process is the key component of any work, regardless of its quality or decorative intent. A person's expression of art is what they do to develop, hone, and feed their enthusiasm for their art or profession. Furthermore, I'm certain that I have not been given the authority to respond to the perennial debate over what constitutes great art. I've previously studied art history, and it seems difficult to determine historically what will be outstanding on a historical scale and what isn't. For instance, there were contentious debates over whether or not the Impressionists produced fine art.

The good news is that there are those who think that whatever is being made by artists and craftspeople qualifies as excellent art. In keeping with that, here is a collection of artists whose work, in my view, falls into "fine art" due to its ingenuity and overall expression, even if it likely fits the description of "decorative art" Your choice.

Below are a few craftsmen who have houses and studios in Northern New England. The range of work created is limitless. The list continues on and on and includes mosaics, stained glass windows, fused glass, intricately carved corbels, wrought iron metalwork, ceramic tiling, and wooden furniture items.

The Portland, Maine-based artist Annette Kearney is well-known for her vibrant, Matisse-inspired majolica tiles and mosaics. As she worked with designers, architects, and homeowners around the nation to create unique shower tiles and backsplashes, her company prospered.

However, with the recession of 2008, her job changed course. Her enthusiasm for creating glass into artistic, abstract, free-standing panels and her skill were taken in a new direction by her long-standing passion with fused glass and the convenience of a kiln in her workshop. Kearney was inspired to learn about the science of fused glass by the convergence of her personal circumstances and artistic opportunity. Her creativity has been stimulated for many years by the amazing experience of creating a glass panel in three layers, cutting and collage it, burning it, and then revealing it 18 hours later.